How are Americans in Mexico treated? How are expats in Mexico treated generally?

Americans and other expats are treated quite well in Mexico. There are many private expat organizations, not just here in Merida, but across Mexico. One example in Merida is the Merida English Library, where many young Mexican professionals come to practice their English and the expats practice their Spanish by talking with each other.

There are different types of expats in Mexico. Some want to dive in a hundred percent into the Mexican culture and not associate with another gringo or expat. They want to immerse themselves in the Mexican culture, the language, traditions, and neighborhoods, while some expats in Mexico do not. Some expats do both, spending their free time in the expat community and the Mexican community. Mexicans in general do appreciate them. Especially the expats who try to integrate themselves into the society are very well accepted and even the ones who do not are still accepted. The Mexican locals realize that the expats are creating jobs, even simple household jobs such as gardening, dish washing, being maids, etc. They realize that they’re bringing money into the economy and helping out in the ways that they can. Some expats help financially, some give back by teaching English, teaching business, and opening businesses.

In general, expats are welcome in Mexico.

(Logo for Merida English Library, which exhorts expats to bring books to Merida, Mexico, pictured.)

Posted September 10, 2015

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How Americans are treated in Mexico depends, which is true anywhere you go. When you’re working with an educated person, it’s a different treatment than if you’re dealing with an uneducated person. An example of an uneducated person is somebody who isn’t familiar with the world, who may have a TV, but hasn’t been exposed to Americans. The name "Gringo", as a matter of fact, is still viewed by a lot of Mexicans as a bad word, because originally, it was, since it meant "take your green money and go."

There are still some Mexicans who don’t know how to deal with you, and when you don’t speak Spanish or even try, then you’re not respected. For example, if you’re saying, “Buenas dias” when it’s really “Buenos dias.”

When I first came to Mexico, I had some conversational Spanish only to prepare me for vacations to Puerto Vallarta or Cancun. We’ve all been there- either spring break, or we’re going to go get hammered for a week, raise hell and flirt with the Mexican señoritas. That was the only Spanish I had, so when I came here, it was time to really learn Spanish. I blurted out a lot of stuff, and my wife used to say, “Goodness, I can’t believe you have no fear.” I had a strong desire to learn, and the only way we learn is to make mistakes.

The Mexican people are wonderful. Once you get past the border towns and come to real Mexico, it’s like going to Kansas in the US. There are real people, and there’s not the glitter about Las Vegas, or the abruptness of New York City, and California’s a whole different planet.

Here in Mexico, there are real people who will help you. The Mexicans will become your best friend. I would rather have a neighbor on each side of me be Mexican than I would an expat, just because American society is more “keep it to yourself” and “mind your own business,” but in Mexico, they know everyone’s business. So if you leave for the weekend and they know it, they’re going to guard your house and look after it. They’re going to bring you some tamales and teach you a little bit of Spanish. They’re going to explain to you how to pay your electric bill before it comes, because when you get your electric bill, it’s already too late, so you’ve got to know to pay it ahead of time.

These are things that I help people with when they move to Lake Chapala. It’s not about buying a house; it’s about learning how to live here. You can have the nicest home in the planet, but if you’re not happy with the place and you don’t fit in the group here, you’re going to sell your house in a year or two. We don’t want that.

We have to teach you how to shop, how to get to the market, how to ride a bus, how to wait in line for the doctor, where and how to pay your bill ahead of time, and understand that Mexicans have more holidays than any other country in the world.

In Mexico, it’s fiesta time all the time. Mexicans have a good attitude- they don’t have the stress that we have. I had a guy tell me, “Hey Felipe. Chill out, man. Have a tequila.” If I get uptight about something, they just say, “Relax. Have a tequila; it will change.” If the light’s not working, work through it. Everyone’s fine. Don’t get stressed out over it.

Americans are treated well in Mexico. Mexicans will treat you better than you treat them. To start with, they will give you the benefit of the doubt. They welcome you to their country; they’re very proud of it, and they will teach you the ways of their country, and when there’s a festival, they will explain to you how and why. Mexicans are very traditional.

Mexicans don’t understand why Gringos always want everything right now. We’re too quick. We have too many drive-through’s of everything: you can drive through and get your drugs or your food. Here in Mexico, it’s more of an event. When they sit down and have their meal of the day, it’s an hour or two-hour thing. Mexicans enjoy that; they enjoy the moment.

Sundays are family day in Mexico. When was the last time you saw a family day? It’s unheard of anymore, because everyone’s doing something else, but in Mexico, grandma rules. I don’t care how tough a “cholo” you are. A cholo is a gangster-like guy, who may be a tough guy, but when he comes home on the weekends or for a Sunday event, grandma will grab him by the ear and jerk him down and say, “You behave.” She still rules.

Mexicans open their doors to the Gringos, and to the expats. They teach you and they help you. If you’re a jerk to them, they won’t have anything to do with you. Some are more educated, they understand where you come from, they understand your social world, and they help you make that transition. The more uneducated people don’t understand you, but instead just want to work for you and make money. They know you have a lot of money, and they don’t want to steal it from you, but they want to get what they can from you. If they are a gardener, they want to garden for you. They want those dollars so that they can get some income.

Mexicans treat expats well. The medical industry will treat you well, as well as the service industry. They are very polite and very formal, and we are not. Us Gringos are very crude and very cold. We might say, “He, Joe!” and wave to you across the street. Mexicans won’t do that. They will walk across the street, shake your hand, ask you how you are, and care about the answer. Every time someone comes into a store or a business, it’s “Buenos dias,” or “Buenas tardes,” and it’s never, “Hey, you got any sodas?” It’s a greeting, and it’s formal.

When you learn to live here in Mexico, you need to learn to be polite and formal, and above all else, respectful. They’re big on that, and you’ll notice that. Even when you’re getting a ticket from a cop, he’s going to greet you first. He’s going to say, “How are you today?” It’s just different. It’s not as cold and hard as it is in other places north of here.

Mexico is traditionally warm and hospitable. Visitors and expats from all nations are warmly welcomed by most of the people. Of course, as in most things in life, there are some exceptions but they are rare.

Mexico is the number nine country in the world for the number of visitors with over 32 million visitors in 2015. A huge percentage of them are repeat visitors which really proves that Mexicans are warm and friendly to others.

It does not matter whether an expat lives in a community comprised mostly of other expats or if there are no other expats in the area. It is easy to feel at home in Mexico. I’ve talked with people who have visited Mexico over and over for 30 or more years and they say it has always been the same type of hospitality and warmth throughout the years. I get similar comments from expats who have lived here a few months or many years.

The only complaints that I have ever heard were from a few people who came with a bad attitude and expected problems. And naturally, people try to avoid them and minimize any contacts with them.

I am the only expat in my neighborhood and when I go walking, people greet me cheerfully and I feel right at home. It reminds me of small towns in the US even though I am in a city.

Some expats from the US worry about reactions if Donald Trump takes strong actions during his Presidency that hurt Mexico. I do not think there will be any difference in the way Mexicans treat people. I believe the majority of Mexicans never judge people on the politics and actions of their home countries.

Mexico is a warm and friendly country and it is the perfect place to visit or to become your new home.

The Americans and other expats in Mexico are treated very well and are very welcome. I haven’t seen that they are banned from anywhere. In Mexico, we are a community. From a cultural perspective we are very warm with people who visit our country and who live here. We always try to help in any way we can.

I don’t see any resentment relative to money or anything else. Mexicans are used to having foreigners within in our community. So on the contrary, as Mexicans, we see expats who have money as being very positive for us, because, from a financial perspective, expats with money creates jobs.

(Children building a Mayan temple on the beach at Cancun, Mexico, pictured.)

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